The present invention relates generally to a container for receiving a plurality of cartridges and, more particularly, to such a container that can be adapted to receive cartridges of one of a plurality of calibers.
Currently used firearms come in a wide variety of calibers. While "caliber", strictly speaking, defines the diameter of the bore of a gun or a bullet which is to pass therethrough, the cartridges for the various caliber firearms vary not only in diameter but also in length. While cartridges can be stored and carried in the original boxes in which they are purchased, such boxes are typically made of cardboard which cannot withstand moisture or the stress of repeated handling which is common in the case of many cartridges which are reloaded by users of the associated firearms.
To overcome these problems, durable containers made of metals and plastics have been produced. See for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,923,152 and 4,467,947 which illustrate two varieties of cartridge containers. Unfortunately, known prior art cartridge containers can accommodate only a single caliber of cartridges or at most two or three various but often related cartridge calibers. Thus, a large variety of such containers must be produced resulting in increased manufacturing expenses as well as large inventories to accommodate users of a large variety of firearm calibers.
What is needed, therefore, is a cartridge container which can be adapted to receive a plurality of cartridges of one of a plurality of calibers. Such an adaptable cartridge container is particularly advantageous for incorporation into a gun case or the like which can receive firearms having a wide variety of calibers.